In a season filled with drama, with most of it revolving around Dwight Howard, the long-term future of the Magic’s starting point guard and co-captain has been almost ignored.

But Nelson has a player option for the 2012-13 season.

He can either opt in for the upcoming season and earn about $7.8 million, or he can opt out and test the free-agent market. He will have to make a decision and declare his intentions within a week of the Magic’s final postseason game.

“My thing is, I definitely want to be here next year and for the rest of my career,” Nelson said.

“I’m just focusing on winning games and helping my team win and lead the team. But definitely it’s something in the back of my mind. But, like I said, I can’t focus on it as much as I would like to. I’ll sit down with my team and my family at the end of the season and discuss what’s going on and what are the possibilities.”

It might seem counterintuitive that Nelson would leave $7.8 million on the table for 2012-13 and seek a multiyear deal with a potentially lower starting salary.

But opting in could have some disadvantages.

First, if he opts in, since his salary would be coming off the books after the 2012-13 season, he would have greater trade value. It would be unsettling to spend the entire season wondering if he would be traded, and if he were to be traded, he would not control his destination.

Second, it’s unclear who the Magic’s coach and general manager will be in 2012-13. Both Stan Van Gundy and Otis Smith are under contract for that season, but many people think neither will be back. And if you’re a player, you want to know who your coach and your general manager will be.

Since Nelson has to declare his intentions within a week of the Magic’s final postseason game, it would help him (or any other player in his situation) if the team’s coaching and management situations are settled before then. But even if the team announces Van Gundy and Smith will not be back, it would seem highly unlikely that the team would have their successors in place quickly.

And, finally, what of the situation with Howard?

True, Howard might ask for a trade in the offseason. That is a definite possibility.

In April, he has averaged 16.6 points, 7.6 assists and 3.2 turnovers per game (keep in mind I subtracted this past Sunday’s game in Denver from his averages since he only played two minutes).

Those numbers are improvements from his prior monthly splits. That’s not a surprise since he and the rest of the Magic’s players have been liberated on offense by not having to throw the ball into Howard for Howard post-ups.

This postseason will be an important postseason for Nelson, who turned 30 in February.

Now, more than ever, he is the focal point of the Magic offense. The team is running pick-and-rolls incessantly, which plays to his strengths.

“Jameer Nelson is going to the hoop a lot more than he did before [when Howard was healthy]. As a result, he’s opening up the game for the 3-point shooters, a lot of great 3-point shooters who shoot more than anybody in the league. So that’s what you really have to be concerned with.”

So the Magic desperately need him to play well.

In the process, he will have a chance to prove to potential teams what he can do.

This time, something strange and wonderful happened. The skies cleared, the rain stopped and the starving blind man gorged himself on a much-needed victory and finally regained his sight ¿ the vision of making the playoffs.